Numerous procedures involving catheters and other minimally invasive devices may be performed to provide a wide variety of treatments, such as ablation, angioplasty, dilation or the like. For example, an ablation procedure may involve creating a series of inter-connecting lesions in order to electrically isolate tissue believed to be the source of an arrhythmia. During the course of such a procedure, a physician may employ several different catheters having variations in the geometry and/or dimensions of the ablative element in order to produce the desired ablation pattern. Multiple devices having varying dimensions and/or shapes may also be employed to account for variations in anatomical dimensions from patient to patient. Each catheter may have a unique geometry for creating a specific lesion pattern or size, with the multiple catheters being sequentially removed and replaced to create the desired multiple lesions. Exchanging these various catheters during a procedure can cause inaccuracies or movement in the placement and location of the distal tip with respect to the tissue to be ablated, and may further add to the time required to perform the desired treatment. These potential inaccuracies and extended duration of the particular procedure increase the risk to the patient undergoing treatment.
In addition, when a balloon is employed, it often must be manufactured or constructed to have a particular shape or dimension for a specific application, and as such, any given catheter with a balloon may be limited to use in situations where the fixed dimensions of the balloon are appropriate. For example, a balloon may have a fixed radius in an inflated state, making it only suitable for a procedure requiring such a dimension or where a particular vasculature may accommodate that radius. As such, multiple catheters having varying fixed dimensions may be needed to successfully perform a desired treatment or to account for variations between patients.
In light of the above, it is desirable to provide a medical device providing various controllable shapes or dimensions, thereby reducing or eliminating the need for additional medical devices having varied, but limited geometric orientations, and thus, limited ability to provide multiple ablative patterns or sizes.